Hatchet



(No Model 2 8heets-Sheet 1,.

J.'R.BALSLEY.

HAQITGHET. I No. 569,161; Patented on. 13, 1896.

HR F! wfiwses gmeamv. V m I j J, R. BALSLEY.

2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

HATUHET.

(No Model.)

Patented 001;,13, 1896i UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES R. BALSLEY, OF OONNELLSVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA.

HATCH ET.

SPECIFICATION formingpart of Letters Patent No. 569,161, dated October13, 1896.

Application filed January 11, 1896. Serial No. 575,069. (No model.)

To a'ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES R. BALSLEY, a citizen of the United States,residing at Connellsville, in the county of Fayette and State ofPennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inHatchets and Hammers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a new and useful improvement in hatchets andhammers, and has for its object to provide means by which a nail may beheld in one of several positions upon the poll of said implement for thepurpose of giving said nail its initial start, and also, in the case ofa hatchet, to provide means for driving nails of various sizes withoutinjury to thehandle of said hatchet.

\Vith these ends in view the invention consists in the details ofconstruction and combination of elements hereinafter set forth, and thenspecifically designated by the claim.

In order that those skilled in the art to which this inventionappertains may understand how to make and use the same, I will describeits construction and operation in detail, referring by letters to theaccompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and inwhich- Figure 1 is a perspective of a hatchet havin g my improvementsembodied therein; Fig. 2, a cross-section of the poll; Fig. 3, a detailsection at the line 00a of Fig. 2; Fig. 4, a perspective showing a nailin one of the holders in position to be given its initial start abovethe manipulator, and Fig. 5 a similar view showing the nail in positionto be started below the manipulator.

Similar letters denote like parts in the views of the drawings.

The blade A and eye B of the hatchet are of the usual shape and suppliedwith a suitable handle O. In each of the four corners of the poll D areformed grooves E, terminating in semicircular notches F. These groovesare of such a shape and sizeas to receive the body of a nail and retainthe same therein by gravity when the groove is held in the properposition and the head of the nail rests in the semicircular groove, asclearly shown in Figs. 4 and 5. This arrangement permits the starting ofa nail bya blow from the hatchet above, below, or to either side of theoperator, and when the nail has thus been started it in no wayinterferes with the reverse movement of the hatchet, in that it has nodirect hold thereon.

In many instances the initial starting of a nail is accomplished withmuch difiiculty and loss of time, as, for instance, when it is to beplaced considerably out of the reach of the operator either above orbelow, or in work which necessitates the driving of the nails in closeproximity to protruding parts thereof 3 but this is entirely overcome bythe use of my improvement, which greatly facilitates these operations.

While I have shown my improvement as embodied in a hatchet, it isevident that it may be applied to a hammer, as its only connection iswith the poll of the implement. When a hatchet is used, I prefer toarrange the nail-drawing notches G and H as shown in the drawings, sinceby the notch G being placed near the handle greater leverage is gainedand a much larger nail may be drawn without breaking the handle thanwould otherwise be the case.

The notch H is for drawing smaller nails, and especially those havingsmall heads, it being V-shaped and the walls thereof beveled so as totake a firm hold upon the nail with but little reference to the headthereof.

In practice I have found thatthe four grooves formed upon the corners ofthe poll are sufficient for all practical purposes, but should it befound desirable these notches may be multiplied and arranged in a circlearound the circumference of the poll.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and usefulis- As a new article of manufacture, a hatchet having its poll providedwith beveled corners, and having longitudinal grooves centrally of thebeveled portions, a shoulder formed at the end of the bevel and grooveby an undercut which receives the head of the nail as and for thepurpose specified.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto affixed my signature in thepresence of two subscribing witnesses.

JAMES R. BALSLEY.

Witnesses:

S. S. WILLIAMSON, CHARLES H. BALsLnY.

